Donald Trump ups the ante and signals major escalation in Mexico
President Trump claims Mexican drug cartels hold massive power and threaten the U.S., promising to escalate military action on the ground in Mexico.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced Thursday in a Fox News interview that he plans to start striking Mexican drug cartels “on land.” “It’s very sad what’s happening in that country. The cartels kill 250,000 people in our nation every year,” he said.
Without offering details about where or when these ground attacks would occur, Trump emphasized that the cartels have “tremendous control” over Mexico and “keep authorities terrified.” He also mentioned that he will meet next week in Washington with María Corina Machado, a Venezuelan opposition leader.
Trump’s war on drugs
Since September, the United States has launched an extrajudicial military operation deploying over 14,000 troops against vessels in the Pacific and Caribbean. Operation Southern Lance was announced in November by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to target what he called “narco-terrorism.” Washington destroyed 40 boats, in which at least 110 people were killed. “We have eradicated 97% of the drugs entering by water, and now we are going to start attacking on land,” Trump said.
Threats for Colombia and Mexico
After last Saturday’s operation in Venezuela, which resulted in the arrest of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, Trump signaled his intention to take military action in Colombia and Mexico to combat drug trafficking. After accusing Mexico of not doing enough to fight the cartels, he warned that “we will have to do something.” Regarding Cuba, he said a military intervention would not be necessary because the country was “ready to fall.”
Mexico pushes back at Trump
In recent days, Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum rejected the idea of U.S. intervention on Mexican soil. “We are collaborating,” she said, referring to the shared responsibility of both countries to fight drug trafficking and to prevent weapons from reaching Mexico. Sheinbaum has already asked Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente to arrange a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. “We are going to strengthen our relationship and information sharing,” she emphasized during her Friday morning press conference.
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